Each week, publications from the The Southern California News Group’s 11 properties (Orange County Register, L.A. Daily News, Press-Enterprise, San Gabriel Valley Tribune, Long Beach Press-Telegram, The Daily Breeze, San Bernardino Sun, Daily Bulletin, Redlands Daily Facts, Whittier Daily News and Pasadena-Star News) nominate Athletes of the Week for their respective region.
Each nominee is entered into the overall Southern California Athlete of the Week county-wide vote.
Click on the newspaper links below the athlete’s name to read about their performance from last week, and then vote for who you think is the best athlete this week.
Readers are allowed to vote multiple times. Voting ends at midnight, but final totals aren’t always immediately reflected due to processing.
GIRLS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK VOTING
The overall winner will be announced on Friday, Sept. 20.
Voting poll at bottom of the page.
Andre Corona, Sierra Vista: Corona was the MVP in a wild 34-27 victory over rival Baldwin Park as he rushed for 176 yards and three touchdowns The Dons trailed the Braves 27-6 in the third quarter and Corona helped them come all the way back. Corona scored back-to-back touchdowns that cut the Braves’ lead to 27-26. It was Sierra Vista’s first win over Baldwin Park since 1999, and only the school’s third win ever over Baldwin Park.
Jamarea Jones, Dominguez: The diminutive speedster rushed for 211 yards and two touchdowns, one of them covering 66 yards, to lead the Dons to a 49-30 triumph at Compton to win the unofficial Compton city championship. Jones, a 5-foot-4, 134-pound senior, has played a huge role in Dominguez’s 3-1 start as the program seeks to return to prominence going 1-9 in 2016, 2-8 in 2017 and 3-7 last year.
Jake Garcia, Narbonne: Garcia led the Gauchos to a 38-0 win over Orange Lutheran on Friday night. The junior quarterback completed 21 of 29 passes for 393 yards with four touchdowns and one interception. Through four games, Garcia has completed 72.5% of his passes (79-109) with 11 touchdowns and four interceptions.
Ricky Murillo, Claremont: He completed 14 of 21 passes, including nine of 10 in the second half, for 302 yards and four touchdowns as Claremont defeated Pomona 41-23. The win improved the Wolfpack to 2-1, the school’s first winning record through three games in four years.
Gary Bryant Jr., Centennial: Bryant had nine catches for 234 yards and a school-record five touchdowns to help the Huskies to a 63-29 victory over Liberty (Henderson, Nevada). Bryant’s yardage total Friday night also was fourth-highest total in school history and 31 yards shy of his career-best set last season against Chandler (Arizona). Bryant, who is one of the top-rated receivers in the nation, has 24 catches this season and leads the Inland area with 531 receiving yards.
Jaden Casey, Calabasas: Casey threw for 265 yards and six touchdowns on 16-of-21 passing in the Coyotes’ 46-35 come-from-behind victory over La Habra at home. Four of Casey’s touchdown passes came in the second quarter. The Fresno State commit led Calabasas (3-1) back into the win column after it suffered a double-overtime loss to Serra of Gardena the week prior. This week, Casey will try to avenge last year’s 49-21 loss to JSerra when the Coyotes travel to Orange County on Friday.
Brandon Palacios, Santa Ana: He won the boys Division 1 Junior race Saturday at the Laguna Hills Invitational. It was Palacios’ second straight year with a win at the meet. “It was challenging,” he said. “I just had to focus on the team. It wasn’t about me anymore.” Santa Ana cross country coach Carlos Nava said Palacios is a driven athlete. “He’s really passionate about running,” Nava said. “He’s figured out that hard work is what gets people to go where he wants to go.” Santa Ana is scheduled to compete in the Woodbridge Invitational this week.
